Near the end of the ‘Hamilton’ on Disney+ – Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hip-hop-infused production about the first Secretary of Treasury, United States founding father Alexander Hamilton – I sunk in my seat, completely overcome by the gravity of this story. After nodding my head along with the rhymes, laughing out loud, and bouncing in my seat to its music inspired by 90s east coast hip-hop, emotional quicksand drowned me in my couch cushions.
Having seen ‘Hamilton’ live in a massive theater, watching in a more intimate home setting didn’t lessen its impact. My opinions are the same.
The musical gives its viewers a lot to grasp, and it hurts so good to gather what’s incredible about it close to your chest. The acting was outstanding, especially Phillipa Soo as Eliza Hamilton. Several times her all-too-believable reactions made us ache and cringe and gasp. Christopher Jackson was also a dramatic standout as the wise and commanding George Washington.
Packed with riveting performances, the gold pedestal is rightfully shared by Miranda as Hamilton and Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr. In the beginning Hamilton is the young, loud, brash go-getter eager to shake things up in boisterous fashion. Burr was quieter and more calculating. Establishing a friendship that later became deathly soured, their personalities swapped a la late hip-hop icons Tupac Shakur and Christopher “Notorious B.I.G.” Wallace.
‘Hamilton’ had a number of obvious references to hip-hop culture and lore, especially in its music. During the song “My Shot” Hamilton rhymes “I’m only 19 but my mind is older”, a direct quote from Mobb Deep’s now legendary hit “Shook Ones (Part II)”. They even went as far as having a scheduled debate between Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson depicted as a rap battle, calling back to a younger, more playful LL Cool J challenging the seriousness of the intellectually gifted Kool Moe Dee.
What also stood out were the similarities between ‘Hamilton’ and group De La Soul’s classic 1996 album ‘Stakes Is High’. One of them was the way the setting of New York was more like a character than just a place, similar to how Long Island on ‘Stakes’ felt more like a 4th group member and not just the city the trio hails from.
The turntable at the center of the set must also be noted. Used to create some cool effects, at one point during the story time was rewound to show the true story behind Hamilton meeting his wife Eliza. The turntable spun backwards to reset the scene. It also worked like an actual record on a record player, spinning during musical numbers and not moving when the music stopped – like it did suddenly during darker, tragic moments. Those were the ones that sent all our heads around in circles. |THIS.
[Written by Mr. Joe Walker]
